The difference of a few minutes
by DarqueDeath4444
Summary: She had watch her parents get killed. She had been caged, forced to sit in the black market as people came and went. Then, a hand had stretched out to her, coming from where she would soon find a second home. However, it wasn't long before even that was ripped from her again. She swore to become strong, so never again, would she lose those dear to her. Beware of Levi's mouth :)
1. Chapter 1

**Uh, so, yeah. New story. We're still trying it out, so leave us a review if you like it.**

_**Chapter ONE**_

She had no idea how long she had been lying there.

The knock at the door. Everyone expecting Doctor Jaegar to step in. The frozen moment before the knife was stabbed through her father. The men entering their house. Her mother yelling at her to run. Her being too scared to move. The blade being brought down on her mother. The last pleading look shot at her before the light left her mother's eyes.

Her hands were tied behind her back. The men that had killed her parents had brought her down the hill sometime ago, and she had been left lying on the dirty wooden floor ever since.

She had heard the men talking about her. She was going to be sold, and there was nothing she could do about it.

* * *

Levi walked along the dirty street, trying his best to avoid stepping on anything dirty. Well, to him, everything was filthy, but if you spent nearly all your time around the underground district, even Levi had to lower his standards. Isabel Magnolia and Farlan Church followed him, commenting on the way his steps seemed very uncomfortable.

Levi bit his tongue to stop himself from snapping at them. After all, confusing the place they were walking through, he did not want to catch attention. Instead, he pulled the hood of his cloak further across his face. Hidden under the brown piece of cloth that all three of them wore were their stolen 3 Dimensional Maneuver Gear

He glanced back when he heard Isabel gasp. Both him and Farlan followed the gaze of their female companion, and Levi caught sight of a girl sitting in a cage.

Even at first sought, Levi could tell the girl was pretty. Her filthy, slightly blood stained clothes seemed to bring out her features more.

The girl seemed to be around nine or ten.

Levi glanced at Isabel, who kept staring at the girl. The man standing next to her cage was talking to another man, who was gesturing at the girl.

Almost as if she had no control over her actions, Isabel began walking towards the girl. The man by the cage looked up from his customer at the sound of footsteps and looked ready to snap at Isabel when he caught of Levi standing a little distance behind her.

The other man glanced over bias shoulder when the guy stopped talking. Without a wood, he quickly scurried away. No one wanted to face Levi.

Levi and Farlan glanced at each other. They had a very bad feeling about this. Before they could stop her, Isabel had stormed up to the man.

"How much do you want for the girl?" Isabel asked.

Levi's eyes widened at the same time Farlan reached coasts and grabbed Isabel's arm. "Are you serious?" He asked.

Isabel whirled around to face Farlan. "Just look at her." She said. "Look at her and tell me you don't want to help her."

Farlan groaned. "I know, but we won't new able to take care of her-"

Isabel waved him off. "I will." She retorted, then turned back to the man. "So, how much?" She repeated.

Farlan glanced at Levi for help, but Levi was top busy staring at the form to notice. He recognized that look in her eyes. The blank, cold eyes that held nothing, but emotions which the girl was trying so hard to hold back.

Levi blinked when Farlan nudged him. "Isabel is serious." Farlan said.

Levi absent-mindedly nodded, turning back to listen to the man, who was arguing with Isabel over the price.

"She's Oriental, provably the last of her race." The man war saying. "We had to kill her parents to take her. The mother was pure, but that idiot killed her." He muttered the last bit to himself.

"But ten gran just for a girl?" Isabel snapped.

"She's Oriental." The man repeated, as if he was talking to a small child.

Levi stepped forward. "We'll give you three." He said. "And you should take it before I slit your throat."

The man looked as if he was holding his tongue, just because his opponent was Levi. "F-fine." He snarled. Isabel shot him a smug glare, and tossed him the coins. "Take her." The man threw a key at Isabel, who fumbled but managed to catch it.

She darted over to the cage and unlocked the cage door, and opened the chain around the girl's ankle. The girl slowly glanced up at Isabel, before she slowly lowered her gaze again.

Levi stepped back to stand next to Farlan, who turned to him. "Wait, you're agreeing to taking her in?" He asked.

Levi shrug. "Isabel's not going to listen even if we say she can't." He said. "Plus, I have a feeling that the brat will grow strong in the future."

Farlan sighed, but didn't say anymore and the two watched Isabel talking to the girl.

"Hey, come out." Isabel said.

The girl wordlessly leaned forwards and stepped out of the cage. Isabel tugged at something hooked to her belt and brew out a knife.

The girl stiffened, and Isabel placed her hand onto her head. "I'm not going to hurt you." She said. "Just turn around."

The girl obediently did as she was told, and Isabel tried to cut the ropes off the girl's wrist. Isabel clicked her tongue in annoyance and Levi let out a sigh before taking the knife from her. Isabel grinned sheepishly and Levi let out another sigh before he cut off the rope with a simple flick of his wrist.

The girl turned around and looked up at him, before she glancing down at her wrists and rubbed at the red marks.

Isabel bent down so that she was face to face with her. "Hi, I'm Isabel." She said. "That's Levi and that's Farlan." She pointed at her two companions in turn. "What's your name?"

The girl glanced up and stared at Isabel with those blanks eyes of hers. "Mikasa." The girl whispered. "Mikasa Ackerman."

* * *

**Hellooo!**

**So, as we said earlier, this is a new story. **

**If you guys like it and think we should continue, please leave us a review!**

**Also, neither of us have read 'No regrets', so Isabel and Farlan may be VERY OCC and we wouldn't know, so if you think this is the case, please tell us. Though we have read the Wiki page for both characters, we're not very sure...and...yeah.**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter TWO**_

"Were staying here for the night." Levi finally decided. He pointed at a small flophouse. "I know the owner." He said. "And as far as I'm concerned, it's far less filthy that the rest of this fucking place."

Farlan nodded in agreement.

Isabel smiled down at Mikasa. The girl was gripping tightly onto the older woman's hand, eyes wide. Levi kicked the door open, and stormed inside, Farlan following suit. Isabel followed them, gently pulling the girl behind her.

By the time the two females had entered the store, Levi was spinning a key around his finger. "We're sharing." He said, and walked off before anyone could say anything.

When they caught up to him, Levi was sitting on one of the beds. "This place is fucking filthy." He muttered under his breath.

Isabel secretly rolled her eyes at Mikasa. "Levi's a neat freak. Don't mind him."

Levi groaned. "I heard that."

Isabel shrug, and bounced over to a bed on the opposite side of the room. The floor creaked, as if it was going to give way. Isabel didn't seem to care. "Girls on this side." She announced. "Come on, Mikasa."

Mikasa looked up at Isabel, then quickly glanced at Levi and Farlan, before slowly approaching her. Her footsteps were careful, not a sound to be made.

Levi slightly narrowed his eyes, his gaze plastered onto the girl's feet. Her steps were light but sharp, so if needed, she could quickly dart away. She finally reached Isabel, who patted the bed next to her.

"We should head out early tomorrow." Farlan said, and shot Levi a subtle glare. "Because by tomorrow, the news of the fight would have spread."

Isabel threw her arms into the air, clearly exasperated. "He just stepped on your foot." She said. "And you had to punch him."

"He made my fucking shoes filthy." Levi sneered.

"You could have cleaned them later." Isabel said.

"And walk around with filthy shoes for the rest of the day?" Levi snapped.

"Punching the guy wouldn't have cleaned your shoes." Isabel pointed out.

Levi growled and lay down on the bed. "I'm sleeping." He said. "We're leaving as soon as possible tomorrow."

Farlan nodded. He lay down on his bed.

Isabel sighed, and turned to Mikasa. "Go to sleep, okay?" She said. "We'll get something to eat tomorrow."

Mikasa nodded obediently and she crawled onto the empty bed. Isabel watched until the girl was tucked in, before lying down herself.

Levi had never seen his female companion act to mature.

* * *

Levi was usually the first to wake up, so he was pretty surprised that Mikasa was already sitting on her bed. At the faintest of the faintest sound he made when he moved, Mikasa looked up, eyes instantly guarded. Levi was impressed. So she didn't trust them.

He got out of the bed and approached Farlans. He roughly kicked it, and Farlan jumped up.

Levi smirked and Farlan let out a sigh. He crawled out of the bed and began setting up his stolen 3D maneuver gear. Levi approached Isabel's bed and woke her up as well. In ten minutes, the four were already out of the flophouse.

"Levi~ I'm hungry." Isabel whined.

Farlan nudged her. "Stop causing a fuss." He scowled.

Mikasa glanced between the three adults.

Levi caught her glance. "For food, we steal." He said simply.

Mikasa blinked those emotionless eyes of hers and nodded. She had easily caught his hidden message. _'You want to live, you're going to have to learn to steal.'_

* * *

"Watch." Levi instructed. Mikasa nodded obediently. Levi slipped out of their hiding place and casually approached the crowd of people wandering around. Mikasa watched as Levi's hand flashed out from under his cloak. He came back seconds later, a leather wallet in his hands. He shook it next to his ear, and clicked his tongue. "Not much, but will do." He muttered. "Did you get it?"

Mikasa nodded.

"If you get caught, even if you're a fucking brat, you wont be let off easily." Levi said. He had a distant feeling that he was forgetting something.

Mikasa nodded again.

"Good."

Mikasa hesitantly raised her hand.

Levi raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Mikasa took a deep breath. "Is money important?" She asked. "Is it important for us to live?"

Levi frowned. "Of course it is." He said. "Money can buy us fu-." He stopped. _Right. _Now, he had no idea where the 'no swearing around children' rule came from, but Isabel seemed pretty serious about it. "Food. We could steal it, but that would be such a bother."

"Okay." Mikasa murmured.

Levi then pushed his way past the crowd, making his way towards the dirty inn, where Isabel and Farlan were waiting. Mikasa followed him, and once in a while, Levi would check over his shoulder to make sure that she was still there.

* * *

Isabel leaped to her feet when Levi kicked the door to their room open. "Levi! Mikasa! Your're back!" She cheered. "Farlan's not back yet. How did everything go?"

Levi shrug. "As good as it could have." He said. "Unlike somebody, my newest student actually fucking listens."

Levi felt a tug at his sleeve and looked down at Mikasa. "What?" He asked.

Mikasa reached for the button of her cloak and unbuttoned it. She then shook herself, and something landed on the floor. Followed by another, and another.

Isabel gasped. "Wow."

Lying at Mikasa's feet were more than five wallets and pouches.

"Where did you get those?" Isabel asked, eyes wide.

Mikasa blinked. "I watched Levi do it." She said. "I got them where we were walking through the crowd."

Levi stared at the girl. She had picked it up with only one example? She really was something. Just then, Farlan appeared at the door. He glanced around at the quiet atmosphere, and noticed the wallets on the floor.

"Seems like you got a decent amount." He said.

Isabel leaped to her feet, waving her arms in the air. "It was Mikasa!" She yelled. "Can you believe it? Levi only showed her ONCE! She just stole it off the people walking in the crowd!"

Farlan glanced at Levi. "Really?" He asked.

Levi nodded. He glanced at Mikasa again. She was quiet, neat, pretty smart, and was a quick learner. Maybe having the girl around wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

**Now, once again, we have no idea what life was like in the underground city, and the characters may seem OOC.**

**Please ignore our errors, as this was sort of rushed. **

**Please leave us a review!**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter THREE**_

It was scary, really, how Mikasa had gotten better at pick pocketing than both Isabel and Farlan. Levi was still better, but that wasn't surprising. After all, he _was_ Levi.

Levi had taken a surprising liking for Mikasa, as she was quiet and had a thing for clean things. They fit in very well, as both didn't mind the silence. Isabel and Farlan tended to make noise rather than avoid them.

For Mikasa's tenth birthday, she was surprised when Levi handed her a package. She silently took it, and opened it. Wrapped messily, was a Three Dimensional Maneuver Gear. Mikasa's eyes widened.

She had trained with the 3DMG which she had borrowed from Levi, Isabel or Farlan, and they were very surprised at how well she had picked up the skills. Her movements seemed like those of a veteran who had used the gears for years. Still, she was surprised that htey had gotten her her own.

"This way, we can moved around quicker." Farlan had said.

Mikasa offered them a faint smile, and bowed her head. "Thank you." She said.

Isabel jumped to her feet. "I got you some food!" She exclaimed. "Let's feast tonight!"

* * *

It was two months later when they had come, clad proudly in their green cloaks, brandishing the wings of freedom and behaving as though they owned the place.

Farlan glanced behind them. "Hey." He called. "We've got company."

Levi, Isabel and Mikasa all turned their heads, but kept going forwards.

"There're four people about fifty meters behind us." Farlan said.

"The Military Police? I respect the fact that they're still on duty, even at this hour." Isabel snorted.

"But there's awfully few of them today." Farlan said, frowning.

"Really? Their very stubborn." Isabel said, raising an eyebrow. She paused, then turned to Levi. "Hey, Levi! Wasn't what I just said now cool?" She asked.

Levi sigh, and if they were on the ground, Mikasa would have sympathetically patted his shoulder. "Are you an idiot?" He asked.

"Anyways, we can't continue to lead them closer to the base." Levi growled. "It'll be a pain in the ass, but..."

Isabel and Farlan smirked, and glanced at each other. "Farlan, Isabel, Mikasa."

The former two glanced up and nodded together. "Yeah."

Mikasa dipped her head. "Okay."

"Lets go!"

They attached their chords to a bridge below them, and dropped.

Isabel whooped at the top of her lungs, and smashed her arms onto the back of a man, using the momentum to propel herself into the air.

Levi dodged past a man with a cart, ignoring the way he yelled at them. They ducked underneath the bridge, and appeared from the other side. Isabel grinned.

"Hey! They're still coming." Farlan said. He glanced towards the bridge. "And it looks like they're closing in."

Isabel muttered some insults under her breath, which, for once, Farlan seemed to agree with.

However, Levi's mind gears were turning. There was no way the Military Police could pull moves like maneuvering through the crowds.

"Those guys might no be the Military Police." Levi said.

Isabel looked at him. "What? Then..."

"I'll check." Levi said. "Make a sharp turn at the next pillar."

The four attached their chords to the pillar, and turned around. Levi narrowed his eyes.

They landed on one of the roofs. Isabel whistled. "They aren't half bad!" She then paused, and shot Levi a sheepish look. "Ops."

Farlan rolled his eyes.

"I guess that's the Survey Corps for you." He growled.

Farlan turned to him. "You sure?" He asked.

Levi nodded.

"I saw their crest on the back of their cloaks." Mikasa said. "The Wings of Freedom."

"They are the people who actually go outside the wall and fight the titans, right?" Isabel asked. Farlan nodded. Isabel proceeded to compliment them.

"Levi?" Farlan asked.

"I have no intentions of getting involved with them." Levi said. "But now that it's come to this, it wont be easy to shake them off."

Isabel grinned. "I won't lose. I'll make every one of them cry." She turned to Mikasa. "Right?"

Mikasa nodded.

"Shit." Farlan muttered. "This is really a mess. If we get caught, out gears will probably get confiscated. We haven't really done anything, but it'll get very troublesome."

Levi shot them a glance. "It'll be fine as long as we don't get caught."

Isabel enthusiastically repeated his words, and Farlan finally admitted defeat.

"You guys know what to do, right?" Levi asked. Isabel and Farlan nodded.

Levi glanced at Mikasa. "You're coming with me." He said. Mikasa nodded.

Isabel spun around, and disappeared off to the left. Farlan sighed, before swerving off to the right.

Levi met Mikasa's gaze, and he shot forwards. He didn't have to worry, as Mikasa easily kept up. He made a sharp turn to the left, and entered an alleyway. They zigzagged through the streets and stopped on one of the roofs, before glanced behind them.

"They aren't coming." Mikasa noted.

Levi nodded. "I just hope those two retards haven't fucked up or anything." He turned around and began walking.

"Levi!" Mikasa's usually soft voice was raised, and he only had time to turn around before one of their pursuers crashed into him.

Levi gritted his teeth, and flung him off. Mikasa landed next to him, and she shot the other man a menacing glare. "There should have been one more." Mikasa murmured.

"We're going." He shot his chords towards one of the walls, and launched off. Mikasa followed suit. He heard something above him, and looked up. The other man came whirling down. He slashed his blades across Levi's chord, severing through them. Levi swore as he crashed onto the floor.

"Levi!" Mikasa landed on the wall, and pushed off back towards him. She landed beside him, worry filling her dark eyes.

The man landed on his feet in front of them.

The first man stood up. "Erwin, did you get him?"

Levi dug his feet into the ground.

"No." The man, Erwin said, before Levi pushed himself up. He grabbed Mikasa, and pushed her behind him, and flew at Erwin.

He punched the blade right out of his grasp, and dodged the second man's sword as he slashed at him. "Stop!" The man yelled. Levi jumped back and Mikasa was in front of him, gritting her teeth.

"Take a good look around you!" Levi paused, and turned to glance behind him.

Isabel and Farlan were in the grasp of the two other Survey Corpse members. Isabel was struggling, but neither could escape.

"Good work." Erwin called. He then turned to Levi. "Now, I'm going to have to ask you a few questions." He asked, indicating towards the 3DMG.

* * *

**Okay, so, we don't know if we would really call this a new chapter, as it is taken mostly from the Manga, Shingeki no Kyojin: No regrets.**

**We just added a few tweaks here and there...**

**Anyways, the time and the age are probably going to be super messed up, so sorry about that!**

**Read and review~**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter FOUR**_

"Your skill with the 3DMG are remarkable. How did you learn to do that?" Erwin asked.

Neither Levi nor Mikasa looked interested. Isabel and Farlan also stubbornly kept their mouths shut.

Erwin stopped in front of Levi. "You are the leader, correct?" He asked. Levi didn't reply, but Erwin pushed on. "Have you ever received Military training?"

Levi glared up at him.

"Your face tells me that you are plotting how to best kill us and escape, right?" Erwin asked, almost sounding amused. He glanced at the other man. "If possible, I wouldn't want to be too rough, but..."

Suddenly, someone grabbed Levi by his hair. Before he could react, his head was slammed roughly onto the ground. Isabel and Farlan's eyes widened. Mikasa narrowed her eyes, and a growl sounded from somewhere deep in her throat. Levi could see the way the girl was struggling subtly against the handcuffs. Blood was running down her wrists. He had a distant feeling that with some time, she could breaking out of them.

The pain caught up to him, and Levi winced. However, he glared up defiantly at Erwin.

"I'll ask one more time." Erwin said. "Where did you learn how to use the 3DMG?"

Levi kept his mouth shut.

"We didn't learn from anyone!" Isabel screeched. "Get off your high horse, mister Public Servant!"

Farlan narrowed his eyes. "We did it in order to survive here. You don't know the taste of sewer water. Someone like you'll never understand."

Erwin glanced back at Levi. "I am Erwin Smith." He said. "Who are you?"

No one spoke, and the man, once again, smashed Levi's head onto the ground.

"I admire your spirit, but if you keep this up, we'll have to get your comrades involved." Erwin said.

Levi glanced up to see the two Survey Corps members with their blades against Isabel and Farlan's throats. Both looked defiant, but he could see the fear on their faces. Lei glanced to his right, where Mikasa sat, a look of fear in her eyes. He guessed that she was recalling the death of her parents.

"You bastard." Levi snarled.

Erwin looked unaffected. "Your name?" He asked.

"Levi." He growled through gritted teeth.

Erwin nodded, looking satisfied. The grip in his hair was gone, and Erwin crouched in front of him. "Make a deal with me."

Levi narrowed his eyes. "A deal?" He asked.

Erwin nodded. "I wont ask what crimes you have committed. In return, you will lend me your strength. Join the Survey Corps."

Levi paused. "And if I refuse?" He asked.

"I will hand you over to the Military Police. Considering everything on your record, you wont be getting off easy, and I could say the same for your friends."

"Choose whichever you prefer." Erwin said.

Levi glanced at his companions in turn. "I'll take it." He growled. "I'll join the Survey Corps."

_**. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .**_

"Whoa!" Isabel gasped, looking out the window of the carriage. Next to her, Farlan had his arms crossed, and looked deep in thought. Levi glanced absent-mindedly out the window and Mikasa sat beside him, swinging her legs.

Soon, they were told that they had arrived, and the four were ushered out of the carriage.

"Levi..." Farlan began. "About joining the Survey Corpse..."

Levi gritted his teeth. "I'm not joining them. I'm just getting closer to the blonde." He growled. "That bastard. Once I get the chance, I'll kill him!"

Farlan froze.

Isabel glanced between them. "Hey..."

Mikasa kept her eyes on the ground.

"You remember my plan, right?" Faran asked. "If you don't know, tell me. Those guys wont contact us again. It'll be meaningless if we kill Erwin now. This is out chance!" He said. "It'll work. Trust me!"

Levi turned to him. Before he could say anything, someone called out to them. "You three, come here."

Levi whipped around began to walk away. Mikasa followed.

"Levi." Farlan said, but Levi ignored him.

_**. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .**_

Levi sat on one of the stones, overlooking the city. The stars shone brightly in the sky. Mikasa sat against one of the pillars, knees tucked into her chest.

"Whoa!" Someone exclaimed.

Levi turned aorund to see Isabel and Farlan appear from the door.

"Keeping this all to yourself?" Farlan asked.

Isabel nodded. "You sneaked off on your own..." She trailed off and glanced at Mikasa. "Or not."

"It's because you two are noisy. I can't kill anything quietly with you guys around." Levi said.

Farlan sighed. Isabel held up a few bottled. "Com on!" The two sat on the stone pillars next to Levi.

"They say stars actually go round and round in the sky. Is that true?" Isabel asked.

Farlan shrug. "Seems like it."

"Levi, compared to the place you came from, which one if prettier?" Isabel asked.

"How should I know?" Levi asked. "It's been some time since I looked up to the sky like this."

Mikasa turned around and lay her arms on the stone. Isabel grinned down at her and ruffled her hair.

"Farlan." Levi said. Said guy turned to him. "I wont kill him for now." Levi continued. "I'll trust you."

Isabel grinned. "Me too! I'll trust you!"

Farlan glanced at her fondly. "Isabel..."

Mikasa nodded.

**_. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ._**

"We're going straight into the Corps?" Isabel asked. She glanced between Levi and Erwin.

"Wait, hang on!" Farlan protested.

Isabel turned to him. "What, are you scared?" She teased.

Farlan frowned. "Of course! We can die! But...what about Mikasa?"

Isabel stopped at this. Said girl was sleeping in the room they had gotten.

"Don't worry." Erwin said. "I'll have her join the Training Corps, and she can join you guys when she's older."

"Then why are we going straight into the Survey Corps?" Isabel asked.

Erwin glanced at Levi. "Because we can use your strength."

Levi narrowed his eyes. "We don't get a say in this fucking thingy, do we?"

Erwin smiled.

* * *

**Hello, people!**

**New chapter. As we said before, the time line is pretty messed up. The titans will breach the wall in the next chapter, or the one after that. Eren and Armin will appear, along with the rest of the people.**

**Read and Review!**


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